


Il Tempo Di Tutto

by GhostTari



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-26
Packaged: 2019-09-20 03:33:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17014866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GhostTari/pseuds/GhostTari
Summary: Meant to be a chance to recover after his kidnapping in Afganistan, Tony's stay in an Italian villa is not shaping up the way he'd planned.  His vague dreams of relaxation with beautiful people have been interrupted by vanishing lights, non-existent voices, and men in WWII clothing.





	1. Chapter One

Tony sighed as he spotted what must be another campfire down the hill from his villa. So much for privacy. The paps must not have gotten the hint after Happy had been sent to deal with them last time. Oh well, if you want something done, and all that. 

He left the veranda through the low wall opposite the door into the villa. His nearly $600 loafers were not made to be hiking across large empty fields to herd away idiots unable to respect a person's need for quiet. Not that he was known for wanting quiet. 

Glancing back at the house to gauge the distance he'd covered, Tony knew he must be close. The light hadn't been too far from the villa. As he rounded a copse of trees and pushed toward a narrow beam of light he could now see, he opened his mouth to wax sarcastic at the assholes he could clearly hear ahead. Tony pushed into the clearing, ready to give everyone a verbal lashing and then froze, mouth open, tongue frozen. 

The clearing was empty. There was no fire or light of any kind. No evidence that anyone had been in this clearing at any time recently. He stared around him, mind scrambling to interpret what made no logical sense. He'd heard men talking, joking. Seen flickering light that had to have been a fire. Smelled cigarettes smoke. And yet, there was no one there. Hadn't ever been for all he knew. 

Tony did an abrupt about-face and hurried back to the villa. Maybe it was time for more meds. Or maybe not. Hallucination? He thought through the pain medications he'd been on recently. None of his dosages were high enough that they should have caused anything like this and he was nowhere near drunk enough for this shit. He scrambled through the back door of the villa and headed for the bar. 

“J. Did Happy leave any sort of report on the paps he dealt with last night?”

Tony's phone lit up next to him. “No, sir. Would you like me to send him a message asking for a report?”

“Nah. I'll call him in the morning.” He took his drink to the window. The only visible lights were in the village in the distance and the moon reflecting off the water of Lake Como. Tony huffed another sigh. He certainly wasn't going to get any sleep now and his lab was halfway across the world. 

“Time to work, J.”

“Certainly, sir.”


	2. Chapter Two

“Jarvis, order me some hiking boots.” 

Tony pulled on the hardiest pair of shoes someone had packed for him, which realistically weren't very. The pause before Jarvis response was telling. 

“Sir?”

Tony had requested many things from his AI over the years, but never hiking equipment. Outdoor physical activity had never been Tony's forte. 

“I need to find an explanation for last night. Find out where those asshats disappeared off to. Ergo, I need some boots for traipsing around the countryside.”

“Of course, Sir. Why on Earth would you leave that to your security team?”

“Sass!”

He grabbed a jacket and shoved his phone in his pocket. Tapping his earpiece, he spoke. “J call Happy.”

“Happy!” He called when it connected. “Those paps I sent you after the other night. Whatever happened with that?”

“Nothing sir. When I got out there I couldn't find anyone. No trace of anyone being on the property beside the two of us.”

“Seriously? I saw their lights again last night but when I got out there, there was nothing there.”

“Hold please, you went out there on your own?”

“Well yeah, they obviously didn't get the message from you.”

“Sir, we just got you back after three months in captivity and you went out to confront possible trespassers. By yourself.”

“When you put it like that… by the way, on the note, I'm heading out there again now to see if I can find any trace of them.”

“Sir!”

“You're welcome to come but I'm leaving now.”

Tony grinned as he listened to Happy scramble in the background, grumbling about lost breakfast and crazy bosses. 

***

The clearing was just as empty in the light of day as it had been the night before. No visible signs that anyone besides himself had been there recently. Pulling out his phone he laid it in his palm.

“J scan the surrounding area for any signs of life.”

“I'm seeing nothing aside from a few field mice.”

“The hell? I know I saw lights out here. Heard voices. They weren't even trying to be quiet.”

Happy came puffing up behind him. “Perimeter is still clear. I can't find any signs of anyone here besides us. You alright boss?”

Tony shook his head. “I thought so. Too many pain meds and not enough sleep, I guess. Back to the house, my ribs are hurting and I apparently need some sleep. I'll figure it out later.”

Back on the veranda, he glanced over his shoulder at the fields below the villa. Still nothing it if the ordinary. Turning toward the house, he froze. 

“Happy. Look at that.”

Happy joined him next to the low wall. “What is it?” 

“Down in the tree line where we just were. What do you see?”

“Trees, boss.”

“Nothing else?”

“Nope.”

Tony blinked a few times, squinted, then rubbed his eyes. It was still there, but Happy couldn't see it. Two men, leaning against the nose of a tank. Just under the tree line where they should be easily visible to anyone at this vantage point. A tank that obviously had not been there when he and Happy had combed the area a few minutes previously. There was no possible way a tank could have made it, well anywhere really, without anyone taking notice. 

“I'm going to bed, Happy. Thanks for walking with me.”

Something was obviously wrong. Sending up a prayer to whoever he focused on getting into the master bedroom and collapsed into the bed. PTSD, lack of sleep, whatever it was would wait. He'd sleep for a while and go from there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Concrit always welcome. Just a reminder, I'm posting as I write so updates may be erratic and I may go back and make changes or corrections as needed for continuity.


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is why I shouldn't post when I'm half asleep. I forgot the first half of the chapter. Still small and still a stumbling block for me but better than it was. Also, I deleted the chapter instead of editing, so I've lost a couple of your comments before I had a chance to reply. I'm sorry! I'm glad you're enjoying and I'll try to respond more quickly!

“Hey Stevie, you seein’ this?”

Steve turned from his position scanning the distance for danger. Bucky was pointing up the hill at the villa that was lit up like a dance hall. 

“I thought the colonel said the occupants had evacuated,” Steve replied. 

“He did. Ain't nobody s'posed to be up there. The family left weeks ago and it's behind our line. Some looter or dumbass corporal's gonna get his ass blown up.” 

Steve sighed. “Guess we better go check on it. Gabe, Dum Dum, keep watch.” The men nodded in response.

Following the tree line, Bucky and Steve slowly made their way up the hill. It wasn't until they reached the low rock wall surrounding the veranda that they began to hear the music. A low throbbing, pounding tempo they'd never heard before. Sharing a bewildered look they crossed the veranda for the door they could see across from them. Bucky pushed it open, tense and watching for any movement from the other side. 

There was no one to be found. The maddening music, if it could be called that, continued, ignorant of the confused soldiers. 

“Look for the source of the music!” Hollered Steve. “We need to shut that off before the Germans start shelling again.”

The open living space followed through into an equally open kitchen. Still not a living person in sight. Dashing across the open space to the door leading further into the house, Bucky ducked into the doorway. 

“There's no one here,” Steve said.

Bucky sounded exasperated. “Lights are on but nobody's home”

Steve snickered but kept his eyes focused on the entry points. This made no sense. Like Bucky said, literally every single light in the home was on but their search found no one inside. They'd checked every crevice, grimacing the entire time at the bone-rattling music that was coming from… somewhere. 

What idiot would have made such a target of themselves knowing how close they were to the front? 

“Let's check the perimeter one more time,” Steve said. “Whether it's a sick joke, a trap, or just plain stupidity, we'll figure it out.”

He followed Bucky to the door and covered him as he cleared the veranda. As soon as his foot met the tile outside the door everything went silent. All the lights went out and the music disappeared. 

They both scrambled to have the wall at their backs, on high alert. When nothing jumped out at them, Steve inched forward, eyes peeled for any movement. They slowly made their way around the house. Again, nothing moved. Making one last pass through the house anxiety blanketed them. There was no logic in this. If was a trap, it should have been sprung already. No prankster had this much time in a war zone. This was ridiculous. 

“Someone's gonna get their ass beat for this one.” Bucky huffed.

**Author's Note:**

> Short and sweet. Let's see where it goes.


End file.
